Dutch telling time game
Fifteen entries, and this is the hardest set in Dutch. Half vier is 3:30, not 4:30, and then Dutch keeps counting from that half hour: vijf voor half vier is 3:25 and tien over half vier is 3:40.
15 words 5 games Free · no signup
Five games run on this set, since most entries are whole clauses. Kraken Escape is the right one here: it shows a time expression against an English meaning and asks whether it is right, which is exactly the judgement half vier demands.
The 15 words you will practise
| Dutch | English | Say it like |
|---|---|---|
| Hoe laat is het? | What time is it? | hoo laht is ut |
| Het is één uur | It is one o'clock | ut is ayn uur |
| Het is twee uur | It is two o'clock | ut is tvay uur |
| om acht uur | at eight o'clock | om akht uur |
| kwart over drie | quarter past three | kvart OH-vur dree |
| kwart voor vier | quarter to four | kvart vohr veer |
| half vier | half past three | half veer |
| tien over half vier | twenty to four | teen OH-vur half veer |
| vijf voor half vier | twenty-five past three | vayf vohr half veer |
| de ochtend | the morning | duh OKH-tunt |
| de middag | the afternoon | duh MID-dakh |
| de avond | the evening | duh AH-vont |
| de nacht | the night | duh nakht |
| 's ochtends | in the morning | sOKH-tunts |
| middernacht | midnight | MID-dur-nakht |
Want the explanations rather than the drill? Read the Dutch time and dates lesson.
5 games run on this set
- Sky Rescue: 10 rounds
- Pop Quiz: 10 rounds
- Kraken Escape: 48 rounds
- Warp Run: 10 rounds
- Flooded Hold: 6 rounds
Questions
Why does half vier mean 3:30?
Because it means half of the way to four, not half an hour past four. Half een is 12:30, half twee is 1:30. German does the same thing, and it is the single most common time mistake an English speaker makes in either language.
What is tien over half vier?
3:40. Dutch treats the half hour as a landmark and counts from it, so between 3:20 and 3:40 you will hear vijf voor half vier, half vier and tien over half vier rather than anything referring to three or four directly. No other language in this library does it.
What is the apostrophe in 's ochtends?
A shortened des, an old genitive. 's Ochtends means in the morning, and the same pattern gives 's middags and 's avonds. The apostrophe is part of the spelling, not a typo.
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